“I consider myself a hacker, but I don’t like to break into computer systems,” said electrical engineering student Kunal Sharma.

Hackathons are weekend-long events where students work in teams to produce inventive hardware and applications for computer, mobile devices or the Web—some of which could serve as a basis for new companies. NPR reporter Claudio Sanchez accompanied the Terrapin Hackers team to PennApps, the University of Pennsylvania’s hackathon event.

“To students here, hacking is not about breaking into anything at all,” said Brent Bovenzi, an electrical engineering and government studies major. “A lot of people do things that could help the world.”

The Terrapin Hackers team beat out more than 100 schools, including MIT, Stanford, Harvard, Michigan, and Carnegie Mellon, to earn the Fall 2013 MLH Championship Trophy. On April 4-6, the Terrapin Hackers will host the University of Maryland’s first hackathon, Bitcamp, at Cole Field House.

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